Fear Is An Open Door

Why Don't They Understand

Hello. Can you hear me? The doctor told me to talk into this little tape recorder. Sorry if it's a little hard to hear me, I can't move very far in my jacket, and my feet and chair are strapped to the floor. I'm kind of stretching to reach the microphone. Well, the doctors behind the window are giving me the thumbs-up, so I guess that means everything's fine. High quality mic. I should probably start now, right? Yep, they're nodding.

The doctor told me to talk about what we discussed when I first came here. I had been ranting on about how I wasn't afraid anymore, that the thing that I feared was finally gone. He asked me what I was afraid of, or what I had been afraid of.

That's a loaded question, isn't it? I mean, humans fear a lot of things, don't we? We're scared of bugs, the ocean, a paper cut , normal things, silly things, things we see on a daily basis and yet tremble at the sight of for one reason or another. I can't really relate to that. I mean, bugs are kind of ugly, but there's nothing to be afraid of in something you can remove from existence just by smashing it with your dad's size twelve shoe. And the ocean is indeed full of dangers like sharks and drowning, but why fear it when the answer is perfectly simple - learn to swim or don't get in the water? As for paper cuts, they only hurt for a second and then are forgotten, no more lethal than stubbing your toe or bumping your elbow. What's so scary about seeing the fluid that makes you alive bubbling up on the outside? It astounds me, really, the things people are scared of. I understand being cautious of things that will kill you, but stuff like this? Geez, get your priorities straight, humanity.

That said, there is one fear that I can understand, one that, I suppose, you can call irrational, even if it isn't to me.

You know how, in movies, the character is walking down a dark hall or through some abandoned building at night, and suddenly a door to their right starts to rattle? Or they hear breathing or scratching or downright screams coming from behind it? You know how they move towards it so damn slowly, dreading every step closer, wanting to open it but so incredibly scared to do so?

I've always hated that. I'd watch a scene like that and think, "That's not scary. Why the hell is she so scared of a closed door?"

Most people, I'm sure, would say something like, "Because there's something terrible on the other side. Because, when she opens it, she might see something awful or get a faceful of straight-up monster-murderer death."

To that, I say... I don't disagree. Anything could be hiding behind a closed door, anything at all. A vile monster, a portal to another world, your parents having five minutes' worth of quick-while-the-kids-are-outside sex - there's no telling what's behind a piece of two-inch-thick hardwood in the average house, haunted or otherwise.

But that's the kicker. It's behind a door, a closed door. There's a barrier between you and the potential danger. If there is something on the other side, something sinister and unsightly, it can't get to you unless the door is opened. That's why scenes like the ones in bad horror movies always piss me off. If you don't like the look of that suspicious door in front of you or don't appreciate the unhealthy sounds coming from behind it, then
why don't you just turn around and walk away from the goddamn door? You don't have to open it and face a fate worse than death. You can just leave it be, ignore it, maybe even lock it for good measure. Doors have locks for a reason. Better still, how about you just barricade it further? Put up some planks of wood, drag a dresser in front of it, even your own two hands would work if you're strong enough.